


63. a half-shadow

by piggy09



Series: The Sestre Daily Drabble Project [86]
Category: Orphan Black (TV)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-24
Updated: 2016-09-24
Packaged: 2018-08-17 00:22:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 922
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8123362
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/piggy09/pseuds/piggy09
Summary: “Thank you for coming with me,” she says quietly. “I know you’re busy.”
“Yeah, ‘course,” Sarah says, looking up from her phone and blinking distractedly at Helena. “I’ve been here, I know the ultrasound is – scary shit. Wasn’t gonna leave you to it alone.”





	

**Author's Note:**

> me: never ever bitter, not once, not even one time, just CEASELESSLY being not bitter about sarah not being there for helena's ultrasound, constantly, just, the most chill,

There’s a baby in the lap of the woman sitting next to Helena at this doctor’s office. When Helena waves to it, it waves back. This is possibly the best day of her entire life.

Here is another reason why this is the best day: Sarah is sitting on her left, drumming her feet against the floor, texting Art about Finding Leads and Hunting Down This MK Bitch and other things Helena can’t manage to read over her shoulder.

“Thank you for coming with me,” she says quietly. “I know you’re busy.”

“Yeah, ‘course,” Sarah says, looking up from her phone and blinking distractedly at Helena. “I’ve been here, I know it’s – scary shit. Wasn’t gonna leave you to it alone.”

Her phone buzzes, and she looks back down. Helena keeps looking around. When she holds out a finger the baby next to her wraps his little baby hand around it, and oh! Oh! Helena loves babies, Helena loves the baby inside of her, each and every baby. Her heart swells with love, big and bright and wonderful.

“Mrs. Hendrix?” calls the woman at the front desk, and Helena yells “here” like the school programs she saw on television.

“Let me handle this, okay?” Sarah mutters, shoving her phone into her pocket and pulling out an ID card from her back pocket. “You don’t want them to remember us later.”

“Okay,” Helena says, and follows Sarah to the front counter. Sarah puts on an Alison-voice and tells the woman about their appointment while Helena stares at the other babies. If she waves to them sometimes they wave back! Sometimes they smile! What a good day! What happiness!

“Come on, Alison,” Sarah says in her Alison-voice, and Helena puts on her own Alison-voice and says “Coming!”

Sarah shoots her a look: _you were supposed to stay quiet_. Helena just beams at her. They troop off to the doctor’s office.

“So, Mrs. Hendrix, how have you been feeling?” asks the woman who is apparently her doctor.

“Lovely!” Helena-Alison says. “Mm.”

Next to her Sarah snorts, but manages to disguise it as a cough. Badly. Helena bumps her shoulder against Sarah’s, and Sarah rolls her eyes and bumps it back. Mouths: _terrible_. Helena sticks her tongue out at her.

“Well, that’s good,” says the doctor, walking in front of them, not seeing Helena’s tongue-poking or Sarah’s word-mouthing. “There’s a lot of fun things for you to look forward to.”

“Farts,” Helena says, because she remembers Alexis saying that and also is waiting for Sarah to choke-laugh into her hand again. She does. It’s good.

“Yes,” the doctor says with a laugh, “plenty of those.” They walk into the room, and Helena has to lie down in a chair while they pour goop on her belly. Sarah takes the chair next to her, leans in close as the doctor turns around to press buttons on her big computer.

“It’s fine,” she whispers. “They let you see your kid bumpin’ around in there, doesn’t hurt or anythin’.”

“We’ll really see my baby?” Helena says, loud, forgetting to do the Alison voice. Sarah closes her eyes tightly. The doctor doesn’t seem to notice, talking vaguely while she presses more buttons. Helena fumbles for Sarah’s hand, squeezes. Sarah squeezes back. Her mouth does a little grin-twist up at the corner. Helena loves her. Helena loves that she’s here, to see Helena’s child.

The image shows up onscreen and Sarah rests her elbows on the chair-bed next to Helena, leans forward to whisper in Helena’s ear. “That’s the foot,” she says, “and that’s the arm, there.”

“It looks like mush,” Helena hisses at her. “There are no feets! You are lying.”

“No, I’m serious,” Sarah murmurs, “right – right there.” She points. When her finger finds the part of the screen that is supposed to be a foot, the doctor presses buttons; Helena hears the sound of a heartbeat. It isn’t her heartbeat. She feels, suddenly, like crying – at the sound of her baby living, loud and strong and beautiful. She turns to look at Sarah.

“Yeah,” Sarah says under her breath, “that’s it.”

“My baby,” Helena says, and turns back to look. “My little baby.”

“Okay, that’s strange,” says the doctor, and Helena’s grip turns tight on Sarah’s hand. Pain-tight. Sarah is squeezing back, still, matching Helena’s grip, but there’s a frown between her eyebrows and Helena doesn’t _want_ there to be a frown, Helena doesn’t want there to be anything strange.

“Is there a problem?” Sarah-Alison says.

“Sorry,” says the doctor, “I didn't see it before because it's lying along the bottom...the other one. Congratulations! You're having twins.”

“Twins?” Helena says, voice cracking. She turns to look at Sarah. “Twins. Like – like us.”

She watches Sarah’s eyes fill up with tears. “Like us,” she says. “Holy shit, meathead. _Twins_.”

“Identical twins,” says the doctor, without looking away from the screen. It’s okay: Helena can’t look away either, now, can’t stop staring at the two of them in her stomach turning somersaults.

“Look,” she whispers to Sarah, “they’re holding hands.”

The doctor laughs a little, and Sarah laughs too. “Not yet,” she whispers, wrapping both her hands around Helena’s, squeezing them. She’s looking at the screen too. She looks about as scared as Helena feels – terrified. Two babies, in Helena’s belly. Two babies that will never have to hurt like her. Two babies, like Helena and her sister holding hands.

“I’ll take care of them both,” she whispers.

“I know,” says Sarah. She doesn’t let go of Helena’s hand.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Please kudos + comment if you enjoy!


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